Bridges are an integral part of railroad infrastructure. They consist of substructure, superstructure, and deck. A common deck type is an open tie deck, which consists of evenly spaced wooden bridge ties laid transverse to the superstructure and rails. One conventional way of securing the open tie deck to steel superstructure involves drilling a hole through the bridge tie and manually feeding an L-bolt through the hole from below. The bottom leg of the L-bolt engages the bottom side of the top flange of the steel beam or girder superstructure, thus providing vertical and lateral deck securement. The installation process typically requires a railroad construction worker to scale or be suspended from the underside of the bridge or to lay on top of the deck and reach down through to ensure the L-bolt is properly positioned to make a good connection to the beam or girder flange. The vertical leg of the L-bolt is threaded on the top portion to accept a washer and nut to secure the bolt in place from the top of the bridge tie. Disadvantages of such conventional systems include ergonomic positions needed for installation and the requirement that holes be drilled in ties. These holes must be drilled near to the flange to ensure proper engagement of the L-bolt to the flange. This is very difficult to do consistently, thus sacrificing the grip of the L-bolt, while in addition setting the L-bolt up for overloading since it's not fully engaging the flange. In addition, these holes provide an access point for moisture and wood-destroying organisms to the heart of the tie, often to portions that were not able to be treated with wood preservatives, and therefore can result in accelerated rot and decomposition. The holes also require time for drilling and manual threading of the L-bolt through the holes. Further, conventional systems also require the use of a timber outer guardrail, which also requires that additional holes be drilled to secure it.